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Taylor Swift compares her snacking habits to a ‘raccoon in a dumpster’ on ‘Ellen’

Taylor Swift loves pushing people’s buttons, especially Ellen DeGeneres’. 

The “ME!” singer made a much anticipated return to The Ellen Show on Wednesday, making it her first appearance in two years. Swift commented on everything from her new kitten, Benjamin, to whether or not she washes her legs (she does). 

During the show’s “Burning Questions” segment, Swift is put on the spot plenty of times. 

When Ellen asks, “If you can’t sleep in the middle of the night, what do you do?” Swift answers, “I go downstairs and rummage through the kitchen and eat whatever I can find and it’s really less like a human being and more like a raccoon in a dumpster.” Who woulda thunk! 

She goes on to say that “fuck” is her favorite curse word and that Killing Eve and Queer Eye are some of her favorite TV shows. Though Swift remains mum on her new music, she does admit she dropped an Easter egg earlier during the show. 

Honestly, as someone who also enjoys scavenging in the kitchen at odd hours while muttering “fuck” under my breath, I’ve never related to Taylor Swift more. 

Read more: https://mashable.com/video/taylor-swift-compares-her-eating-habits-to-a-raccoon-in-a-dumpster-on-ellen/

HBO admits Starbucks cup in ‘Game of Thrones’ episode was a ‘mistake’

The old Daenerys can't come to the phone right now. Her dragons are dead!
Image: mashable composite/shutterstock/hbo

“I had the time of my life fighting dragons with you” Taylor Swift sang years ago.

But it seems the Game of Thrones references run deeper than just dragon imagery. In a new interview, Swift explains that the HBO juggernaut was definitely in her head while writing reputation. 

“A lot of the songs [on reputation] were influenced by the show,” she told Entertainment Weekly.

Swift has always written semi-autobiographical music, but between 1989 and reputation she became a Thrones fan and couldn’t shake the show’s impact.

“These songs were half based on what I was going through, but seeing them through a Game of Thrones filter. ‘Look What You Made Me Do’ is literally Arya Stark’s kill list,” she said, adding that it also has notes of Daenerys and Cersei. (We figured that one out back when the song dropped, if we can pat ourselves on the back for a moment).

SEE ALSO: Old Taylor Swift is dead. May New Taylor Swift forever reign in terror

She named other explicit examples; “King of My Heart” refers to Daenerys and Khal Drogo (complete with vaguely Dothraki drumming), and “I Did Something Bad” is Sansa and Arya’s conspiracy against Littlefinger. 

Swift met writers and actors from the show after becoming a fan, but resisted the temptation to share her little secret.

“At the time, I was making reputation and I didn’t talk about it in interviews, so I didn’t reveal that a lot of the songs were influenced by the show,” she said.

Per EW, Swift said that reputation explores not only sweet, sweet revenge, but the desire to find “something sacred throughout all the battle cries.”

“You find yourself identifying with different characters several times an episode,” Swift said, praising the show. “You go from hating someone to loving someone. You see someone as cold, and then you see the reasons behind why they do what they do. I just feel so lucky to exist when Game of Thrones is coming out.”

Don’t we all, Taylor.

WATCH: HBO admits Starbucks cup in ‘Game of Thrones’ episode was a ‘mistake’

Read more: https://mashable.com/article/taylor-swift-game-of-thrones-reputation/

‘Cats’ will be a CG / live-action hybrid, and more things we learned at CinemaCon

'Cats' star Jennifer Hudson performs 'Memory' at CinemaCon.
Image: Getty Images for CinemaCon

When news broke that the hit Broadway musical Cats would be made into a major motion picture, the questions on everyone’s minds were “What?” and “How?”

On Wednesday at CinemaCon, we finally got some answers.

SEE ALSO: Cats freak out after they see a video of autotuned cat meowing

Although Universal Pictures did not present any footage from the film, we were treated to a behind-the-scenes reel revealing some crucial details about the show. Here’s what you need to know about Tom Hooper’s Cats. 

The cats will be created through motion capture

On stage, the cats of Cats are portrayed by humans in tight, colorful, vaguely cat-like costumes. In the movie, they’ll be done in CG through the magic of motion capture. “I wanted to come up with a 2019 version that was fully our own,” says Hooper in the reel, touting the cutting-edge “digital fur technology” at use here.

The stars have clearly committed; we saw footage of actors like Taylor Swift (Bombalurina), Idris Elba (Macavity), Judi Dench (Old Deuteronomy), and Ian McKellen (Gus) practicing their dance moves and running around the set in mo-cap suits. 

Because we didn’t see any finished footage, how any of them will actually look as cats, once all is said and done, remains to be seen. But it can’t be weirder than the Broadway costumes, right?

The cats are, well, cat-sized

Oh, and about those sets: They’re made to look extra-large so that the human actors will look extra-small — that is, cat-sized. “Everything is three or four times bigger than it would usually be, from a cat perspective,” Elba explained in the sizzle reel.

That means everyone is leaping around on chairs that stand about 10 feet high, and slipping through doors that might be 20 feet high. Honestly, that part of it looks kind of trippy.

The music will stay true to the original stage show

Don’t worry, theater fans: “We’re staying true to the brilliant music Andrew Lloyd Webber wrote,” Hooper says. 

As if to drive that point home, Universal’s CinemaCon panel ended with Jennifer Hudson, who plays Grizabella, taking the stage to perform a lovely version of the character’s signature tune, “Memory.” 

It’s got Hamilton‘s choreographer

The dancing, on the other hand, might get a shake-up. As was reported last year, Andy Blankenbuehler, who worked on Hamilton and the 2016 Broadway revival of Cats, is choreographing Cats the movie. The results, according to star Jason Derulo (Rum Tum Tugger), combine styles as disparate as hip-hop, ballet, and tap.

Francesca Hayward is the one to watch out for

In a cast full of famous people, Francesca Hayward is one of the few names you might not know already — but perhaps that’s about to change. 

The Royal Ballet dancer plays Victoria, and will perform a new song in the movie written by Webber. “Frankie Hayward is such a find,” Hooper says. “She has incredible presence, incredible grace and beauty.”

WATCH: ‘Supergirl’ actress Melissa Benoist is trading in her cape for a Broadway spotlight

Read more: https://mashable.com/article/cats-movie-cinemacon-taylor-swift/

‘Avengers: Endgame’ is smashing pre-sale box office records

Taylor Swift is coming for Thanos.
Image: Axelle/Bauer-Griffin/FilmMagic

As every entertainment, movie, and Marvel comic fan must certainly know by now, April 26, 2019 — the day the highly-anticipated film, Avengers: Endgame, hits theaters — is sacred. 

It’s the day many people will hold their pee to sit in a movie theater for more then three hours so they can probably (almost definitely) watch Captain America die, learn if Thanos will finally be defeated, and see if our beloved fallen heroes will be brought back to life. But Taylor Swift doesn’t seem to care.

On Thursday night the singer launched a mysterious countdown clock on her website and social media accounts that sent fans spiraling. It’s unlabeled, so it could signal a new project, an announcement, or new music for all we know, but the countdown has the nerve to end on the already hyped Avengers: Endgame day.

How much can we be expected to handle, Taylor?! We’re only human.

While it would be fun if Taylor was so excited about seeing Avengers: Endgame that she made a countdown clock, as I’m sure others have done, all signs point to her dropping new music that day. 

She’s changed her social media profile pictures to a soothing pastel, watercolor paint-esque picture, and also tweeted the following photograph alongside the date.

The color pink, along with rainbows, butterflies, and sparkles are definitely a change from Swift’s badass Reputation build-up, but it seems she’s been creating a running theme on her Instagram account leading up to whatever the drop will be.

Image: screengrab/instagram

Since she and the Marvel Universe do share quite the overlapping fanbase, though, a bunch of people are now overwhelmed with all this stacked April 26 news.

While people are trying to be logical here, the fact that Taylor Swift has a song titled “Endgame” and the Avengers movie is literally called “Endgame” is really too perfect to ignore. 

Does Taylor make an appearance in the movie? Does the song? Is she the one who defeats Thanos? Gah, so much to consider.  

They say April 25 is the perfect date, but this year? We might have to make an exception.

WATCH: ‘Avengers: Endgame’ is smashing pre-sale box office records

Read more: https://mashable.com/article/taylor-swift-april-26-countdown-clock/

Taylor Swift covers Elle UK and pens powerful personal essay about pop music

Taylor Swift is on the cover of Elle UK's 'The Music Issue'.
Image: Rich Fury/Getty Images

Taylor Swift may still be kinda secretive when it comes to letting fans know whether or not she’s releasing a new album anytime soon.

But she just opened up about her relationship to pop music and songwriting in a personal essay in the April edition of Elle UK, The Music Issue. 

SEE ALSO: Taylor Swift was dubbed 2018’s most influential person on Twitter

Swift also features on the cover of the issue. On Instagram, she just revealed her gorgeous cover shot by photographer Quentin Jones. 

In her essay, entitled “The Power of Pop,” Swift writes personally about which artists are significant to her (Swift mentions millennial favourites such as Panic! at the disco, The Fray and The Dixie Chicks), and divulges some secrets about how to write a banging pop song. 

Image: ELLE UK/ Quentin Jones

“The fun challenge of writing a pop song is squeezing those evocative details into the catchiest melodic cadence you can possibly think of,” Swift writes. “I thrive on the challenge of sprinkling personal mementos and shreds of reality into a genre of music that is universally known for being, well, universal.”

Image: ELLE UK/ Quentin Jones

Swift also explained why she thinks that pop songs that break through are often the ones with a personal story behind them. 

“I think a lot of music lovers want some biographical glimpse into the world of our narrator, a hole in the emotional walls people put up around themselves to survive,” Swift writes. 

The April issue of ELLE UK is on sale from 7 March.

WATCH: The symbolism in Taylor Swift’s ‘Look What You Made Me Do’ music video is unreal

Read more: https://mashable.com/article/taylor-swift-elle-over-pop-music/

Taylor Swift sweeps up American Music Awards, urges people to vote

Taylor Swift swept up big at the American Music Awards on Tuesday.
Image: ABC via Getty Images

Taylor Swift’s political awakening was front and centre at the American Music Awards on Tuesday, where she also swept up big.

The pop star collected four awards at the ceremony, eclipsing Whitney Houston to become the AMAs most decorated female winner of all time.

SEE ALSO: Taylor Swift credited with surge in voter registrations

While collecting the Artist of the Year award, Swift encouraged fans to vote in the upcoming midterm elections, as they did for her in the AMAs.

“This award and every single award given out tonight were voted on by the people,” she said. “And you know what else is voted on by the people? It’s the midterm elections on November 6th. Get out and vote. I love you guys.”

Swift has been credited for a surge in voter registrations, with Vote.org reporting 240,000 people registered within 48 hours of the pop star’s political Instagram post. Of those, 102,000 registrations were from people between 18-29 years old.

In a rare moment for the usually apolitical star, Swift publicly declared her support for Tennessean Democrats Phil Bredesen and Jim Cooper in the midterm elections, and stated her opposition to Republican Marsha Blackburn.

“As much as I have in the past and would like to continue voting for women in office, I cannot support Marsha Blackburn. Her voting record in Congress appalls and terrifies me,” Swift captioned her Instagram post.

View this post on Instagram

I’m writing this post about the upcoming midterm elections on November 6th, in which I’ll be voting in the state of Tennessee. In the past I’ve been reluctant to publicly voice my political opinions, but due to several events in my life and in the world in the past two years, I feel very differently about that now. I always have and always will cast my vote based on which candidate will protect and fight for the human rights I believe we all deserve in this country. I believe in the fight for LGBTQ rights, and that any form of discrimination based on sexual orientation or gender is WRONG. I believe that the systemic racism we still see in this country towards people of color is terrifying, sickening and prevalent. I cannot vote for someone who will not be willing to fight for dignity for ALL Americans, no matter their skin color, gender or who they love. Running for Senate in the state of Tennessee is a woman named Marsha Blackburn. As much as I have in the past and would like to continue voting for women in office, I cannot support Marsha Blackburn. Her voting record in Congress appalls and terrifies me. She voted against equal pay for women. She voted against the Reauthorization of the Violence Against Women Act, which attempts to protect women from domestic violence, stalking, and date rape. She believes businesses have a right to refuse service to gay couples. She also believes they should not have the right to marry. These are not MY Tennessee values. I will be voting for Phil Bredesen for Senate and Jim Cooper for House of Representatives. Please, please educate yourself on the candidates running in your state and vote based on who most closely represents your values. For a lot of us, we may never find a candidate or party with whom we agree 100% on every issue, but we have to vote anyway. So many intelligent, thoughtful, self-possessed people have turned 18 in the past two years and now have the right and privilege to make their vote count. But first you need to register, which is quick and easy to do. October 9th is the LAST DAY to register to vote in the state of TN. Go to vote.org and you can find all the info. Happy Voting! 🗳😃🌈

A post shared by Taylor Swift (@taylorswift) on

WATCH: Your nightmares are real: This interactive Halloween exhibit explores the dark subconscious

Read more: https://mashable.com/article/taylor-swift-voting-amas/

Taylor Swift breaks political silence to support Senate candidate Phil Bredesen

Taylor Swift just broke her political silence in a rare moment.
Image: Jason Kempin/TAS18/Getty Images for TAS

Taylor Swift has long shied away from politics, a silence which has led to intense criticism from both sides of politics.

But on Sunday night, the pop monarch at last voiced her political stance on the upcoming midterm elections on Nov. 6.

SEE ALSO: Taylor Swift will never be the feminist of our dreams, but we can still listen

Swift, who’ll be voting in the state of Tennessee, actively voiced her concerns for Republican Marsha Blackburn, and backed Democrats Phil Bredesen and Jim Cooper.

“In the past I’ve been reluctant to publicly voice my political opinions, but due to several events in my life and in the world in the past two years, I feel very differently about that now,” Swift captioned her post.

View this post on Instagram

I’m writing this post about the upcoming midterm elections on November 6th, in which I’ll be voting in the state of Tennessee. In the past I’ve been reluctant to publicly voice my political opinions, but due to several events in my life and in the world in the past two years, I feel very differently about that now. I always have and always will cast my vote based on which candidate will protect and fight for the human rights I believe we all deserve in this country. I believe in the fight for LGBTQ rights, and that any form of discrimination based on sexual orientation or gender is WRONG. I believe that the systemic racism we still see in this country towards people of color is terrifying, sickening and prevalent. I cannot vote for someone who will not be willing to fight for dignity for ALL Americans, no matter their skin color, gender or who they love. Running for Senate in the state of Tennessee is a woman named Marsha Blackburn. As much as I have in the past and would like to continue voting for women in office, I cannot support Marsha Blackburn. Her voting record in Congress appalls and terrifies me. She voted against equal pay for women. She voted against the Reauthorization of the Violence Against Women Act, which attempts to protect women from domestic violence, stalking, and date rape. She believes businesses have a right to refuse service to gay couples. She also believes they should not have the right to marry. These are not MY Tennessee values. I will be voting for Phil Bredesen for Senate and Jim Cooper for House of Representatives. Please, please educate yourself on the candidates running in your state and vote based on who most closely represents your values. For a lot of us, we may never find a candidate or party with whom we agree 100% on every issue, but we have to vote anyway. So many intelligent, thoughtful, self-possessed people have turned 18 in the past two years and now have the right and privilege to make their vote count. But first you need to register, which is quick and easy to do. October 9th is the LAST DAY to register to vote in the state of TN. Go to vote.org and you can find all the info. Happy Voting! 🗳😃🌈

A post shared by Taylor Swift (@taylorswift) on

“As much as I have in the past and would like to continue voting for women in office, I cannot support Marsha Blackburn,” Swift wrote, confirming she will instead be voting for Bredesen for Senate and Cooper for the House of Representatives.

“[Blackburn’s] voting record in Congress appalls and terrifies me. She voted against equal pay for women. She voted against the Reauthorization of the Violence Against Women Act, which attempts to protect women from domestic violence, stalking, and date rape. 

“She believes businesses have a right to refuse service to gay couples. She also believes they should not have the right to marry. These are not MY Tennessee values.”

Bredesen responded to Swift’s post on Twitter, writing that he was “honored” to have the pop star’s support.

Swift had prefaced her opinion against Blackburn in her post by stating that she “always have and always will cast my vote based on which candidate will protect and fight for the human rights I believe we all deserve in this country. 

“I believe in the fight for LGBTQ rights, and that any form of discrimination based on sexual orientation or gender is WRONG,” she continued. “I believe that the systemic racism we still see in this country towards people of color is terrifying, sickening and prevalent. I cannot vote for someone who will not be willing to fight for dignity for ALL Americans, no matter their skin color, gender or who they love.”

Swift urged people to register to vote in Tennessee by Oct. 9, especially those who have just turned 18 in the last two years (which is likely many of Swift’s fans).

“For a lot of us, we may never find a candidate or party with whom we agree 100% on every issue, but we have to vote anyway,” she wrote.

“So many intelligent, thoughtful, self-possessed people have turned 18 in the past two years and now have the right and privilege to make their vote count.”

For the last decade, Swift has for the most part kept her political views to herself, a silence she’s gained widespread criticism on both sides of the aisle for. 

In 2008, Swift wrote on her Myspace page, “Republicans do it better,” but in 2009, she told Rolling Stone, “I’ve never seen this country so happy about a political decision in my entire time of being alive,” in public support for Barack Obama.

Swift indicated her support for Hillary Clinton in the 2016 U.S. presidential election with an extremely subtle Instagram post — her sweater was the clue, although we don’t know who she actually voted for. However, the singer’s lack of political engagement saw her adopted by the white supremacist movement. Swift also notably attempted to sue a blogger criticizing her silence on the matter.

Since then, Swift has been an active campaigner in the #MeToo movement following her own experience with a DJ who groped her in 2013. 

And in March, the pop star publicly supported the March for Our Lives campaign to end gun violence, helmed by teen activists who survived the deadly shooting at Marjory Stoneman Douglas High School. Swift posted on Instagram about her donation to the cause, and advocated to “support gun reform.”

Needless to say, fans were incredibly psyched to see Swift breaking her silence this time around.

Others couldn’t help but compare Swift’s political post with that of another music icon, which is kind of perfect:

WATCH: Humans have been tossing junk into space for years. This net could help clean it up.

Read more: https://mashable.com/article/taylor-swift-breaks-political-silence/

Taylor Swift credited with surge in voter registrations

Taylor Swift at the 2018 Billboard Music Awards.
Image: Getty Images

With the midterm elections just four weeks away, voter registrations are surging — and it might be, at least in part, due to pop superstar Taylor Swift.

Kamari Guthrie, Director of Communications for Vote.org, told BuzzFeed the site had collected 65,000 new voter registrations within the 24 hours following Swift’s Sunday night Instagram post in which she blasted Tennessee Republican Marsha Blackburn and endorsed her Democratic opponent, Phil Bredesen, in the Tennessee Senate race.

Per Guthrie, that’s more voters than the site registered in all of August (56,669) and a third of those registered in September (190,178).

SEE ALSO: Snapchat’s voter registration initiative might actually reach new voters

Swift’s post was a rare political declaration. She’s been conspicuously mum in the past, including during the contentious 2016 presidential election. Her comment on Sunday even garnered a public comment from President Trump, who told reporters, “Let’s say I like her music about 25% less now.” 

But, according to Guthrie and Vote.org, Swift’s stand is paying off. Said Guthrie to Buzzfeed, “Thank God for Taylor Swift.” 

In a 36-hour period beginning Sunday morning, Swift’s home state of Tennessee saw over 2,100 new voter registrations on Vote.org, one of the more popular national sites on which voters can register or check their current registration. 

View this post on Instagram

I’m writing this post about the upcoming midterm elections on November 6th, in which I’ll be voting in the state of Tennessee. In the past I’ve been reluctant to publicly voice my political opinions, but due to several events in my life and in the world in the past two years, I feel very differently about that now. I always have and always will cast my vote based on which candidate will protect and fight for the human rights I believe we all deserve in this country. I believe in the fight for LGBTQ rights, and that any form of discrimination based on sexual orientation or gender is WRONG. I believe that the systemic racism we still see in this country towards people of color is terrifying, sickening and prevalent. I cannot vote for someone who will not be willing to fight for dignity for ALL Americans, no matter their skin color, gender or who they love. Running for Senate in the state of Tennessee is a woman named Marsha Blackburn. As much as I have in the past and would like to continue voting for women in office, I cannot support Marsha Blackburn. Her voting record in Congress appalls and terrifies me. She voted against equal pay for women. She voted against the Reauthorization of the Violence Against Women Act, which attempts to protect women from domestic violence, stalking, and date rape. She believes businesses have a right to refuse service to gay couples. She also believes they should not have the right to marry. These are not MY Tennessee values. I will be voting for Phil Bredesen for Senate and Jim Cooper for House of Representatives. Please, please educate yourself on the candidates running in your state and vote based on who most closely represents your values. For a lot of us, we may never find a candidate or party with whom we agree 100% on every issue, but we have to vote anyway. So many intelligent, thoughtful, self-possessed people have turned 18 in the past two years and now have the right and privilege to make their vote count. But first you need to register, which is quick and easy to do. October 9th is the LAST DAY to register to vote in the state of TN. Go to vote.org and you can find all the info. Happy Voting! 🗳😃🌈

A post shared by Taylor Swift (@taylorswift) on

But, while Swift’s statement made waves and is certainly responsible for at least some of those new voter registrations, there are other reasons for the big surge, foremost among them deadlines in several states. 

Tuesday October 9 marks the last day to register to vote online in the states of Arizona, Florida, Georgia, Hawaii, Indiana, Kentucky, New Mexico, Ohio, Pennsylvania, and, yes, Swift’s home state of Tennessee. Several additional states have deadlines fast approaching within the next week, so an uptick in voter registrations is to be expected. 

It’s also worth pointing out that this increase follows the heated confirmation battle and swearing in of new Supreme Court Justice Brett Kavanaugh.

Of course, regardless of the reason, this huge increase in voter registration is incredibly promising. According to one report, voter turnout for the 2014 midterm elections fell short of 37%, the lowest midterm turnout in nearly 70 years.

And if some of these voters are being driven to the polls by Taylor Swift’s Instagram post, then more power to her and to them. It’s a brave new world. 

Read more: https://mashable.com/article/taylor-swift-voter-registration-increase/